The Sorceress's Silent Slaughter!

Emma caught the look Cole gave Su Yi and sighed inwardly. There's definitely something going on between those two!

Su Yi asked, "Where are we inspecting the goods?"

Cole immediately stepped aside. "This way, please. We've got the site ready."

Cole led the three of them about two hundred meters into the desert, where they came upon a temporary camp with seven tents.

Two large trucks sat nearby, caked in dust, along with eight spiked pickup trucks fitted with machine guns. Every vehicle looked straight out of the wasteland.

At least twenty Hound Gang enforcers were in the camp. They all looked vicious and were armed to the teeth.

Cole explained, "Can't be helped. This shipment is too important. The higher-ups are taking it seriously."

"You know how chaotic the wasteland is. If you haven't made dozens or even hundreds of enemies, you can hardly claim to run with the wasteland crowd."

"Don't worry. The Hound Gang has a bit of a reputation around here. We've never robbed anyone we were doing business with."

Su Yi had two level-20 Gifted with him. Wiping out the camp would be easy.

He patted Cole on the shoulder. "I trust you, brother."

With that, he strode into the camp without hesitation.

Cole felt a swell of pride and accomplishment.

He was sure his sincerity and eloquence had won Su Yi's trust.

Cole led the three of them into the largest tent at the center of the camp.

Across a plain meeting table stood a middle-aged woman with heavy makeup and rough skin.

Cole said, "Let me introduce you. This is Lisa, deputy leader of the Hound Gang."

"Deputy leader, this is Arthas."

Su Yi held out his hand with a smile. "A pleasure to meet you, Ms. Lisa."

Lisa shook his hand briskly and gave a slight nod. "Where are the goods?"

Su Yi asked calmly, "Where's the money?"

Without another word, Lisa picked up a small, finely made case.

She opened it to reveal a thick stack of bills shimmering with purple energy.

Sefni and Emma stared from behind their masks.

That was 7,100!

A sum they had never dared dream of!

Su Yi nodded and gave a wave. The three of them set down all their bags.

"It's all here. Go ahead and check. We all know our stuff, so I won't bore you with an explanation."

Cole immediately opened a case. His eyes widened at the sight of forty brand-new guns.

Lisa picked up a Casey 191 and handled it with practiced ease. "Good stuff. Good stuff. Excellent stuff! Perfect condition."

Cole opened the two bags of ammunition. He took a deep breath as he examined the well-made black Armor-Piercing Rounds and white standard rounds inside.

"All quality goods!"

After the two of them had quickly checked everything, Lisa pushed the money across the table. "Count it. The Hound Gang always keeps its word."

Su Yi counted with practiced ease. Exactly 7,100.

Perhaps because the goods had far exceeded her expectations, Lisa's expression softened.

"Be careful on your way back. Things haven't been peaceful around here lately."

"There's gunfire every day, and a dozen or more merchants get robbed daily."

Su Yi nodded. "Thanks for the warning, Ms. Lisa."

After they left the camp, Emma teased, "With your gift for talking, I thought you'd try to sell them something else."

Su Yi smiled. "Don't worry. This is only the beginning."

It would be another five years before the Dark Universe's frenzy completely subsided.

But as the frenzy began to recede, some factions were already itching to recover the ancient technology left from before the Great Cataclysm.

Plenty of people had their eyes on those ruins.

In a few months, all kinds of factions would arrive in Lase City to take part.

As they talked, the three of them left the Nomadic Market.

Just as Su Yi was about to head for the secret passage they had used on the way in, Sefni said, "Someone's following us. Twenty-one people... spread across five positions!"

"They have guns!"

Sefni cried out under her breath and tackled Su Yi and Emma at the same time, one in each arm.

The human body had a level-10 limit. Even at over level 20, the women could not withstand a spray of bullets.

Pfft, pfft, pfft...

A dense series of muffled shots rang out.

Silenced submachine guns.

A hail of bullets passed over their heads and struck the moss on a nearby warship wreck, breaking into metal fragments.

Even after thousands of years, weapons like those could not leave a mark on the ancient warship's remains.

Emma was about to strike back when Su Yi grabbed her hand. "Disposing of bodies here would be a pain. Head for the edge of the desert!"

"We're surrounded," Sefni said quietly.

"It's fine. Follow me."

The two women watched Su Yi move as though he knew every inch of the place. He led them two meters along the ground, then rolled into a channel full of sand and rubbish.

"Come on!" Su Yi hurried forward in a crouch, leading the two of them.

Emma asked in astonishment, "Are you really from Rootvine District?"

"I'm actually the emperor of the Human Alliance," Su Yi said casually. "Give me fifty Void Abyss Coins right now, and I'll make you my empress."

Emma poked him in the lower back and huffed. "Do you think I'm stupid? The Human Alliance doesn't have an emperor!"

"And what kind of empress has to pay fifty Void Abyss Coins for the title?"

Su Yi blinked and looked at Sefni.

Sefni sighed and shook her head slightly. She seemed used to it by now.

As the three of them ran, their pursuers regrouped behind them.

The twenty-one were clearly well trained. Dressed in black with their faces covered, they carried Assault Rifles and six magazines each.

They even wore militia tactical vests.

"They went through the channel, toward the edge of the desert," a young scout said, examining their tracks.

The middle-aged man in charge snorted. "Think they can run? After them!"

"We're taking those three fat targets today."

Su Yi ran for about a kilometer before reaching the edge of the city.

Yellow sand stretched ahead, littered with the bleached bones of wasteland beasts, human graves, and abandoned rubbish.

From there, Vine City towered above them, its dazzling lights making it look like a paradise from a dream.

Su Yi said, "Time for you two to show what you can do."

"No one's around. You might as well let out some of that pent-up stress."

Emma clenched her fists, her face full of murderous intent. Her body turned transparent and vanished.

Sefni's face was cold as ancient ice, and a killing light shone in her eyes.

Meanwhile, the pursuers advanced in tight coordination. They split into five teams again and moved in from five directions.

They called out no warning and made no threats. The moment they saw their targets, they would kill.

The first team swept in from the west. As they passed a grave marker made from beast bones, the young man in front suddenly stiffened and toppled straight to the ground.

"What happened? Mike?"

One of the men behind him whispered urgently.

Then the second, third, and fourth men fell stiffly to the ground as well.

Their eyes bulged, their bodies twitched, and strange, rasping sounds escaped their mouths.

Emma's eyes gleamed with excitement as she moved unseen.

After all these years, she could finally use the Gift she was so proud of to her heart's content!

She savored the sight of those despicable men sprawled helplessly before her.

"You had it coming!"

Emma spat the words and hurried off to find the second team.

On the eastern side, two teams covered each other as they closed in from opposite directions and crossed a heap of bones.

Just then, a glimmer appeared.

Pfft, pfft, pfft!

They fired a rapid volley.

But the two teams realized they had hit no person—only a strange mass of blue-green flame.

An instant later, the flames took the form of a bewitching woman's face.

"What the..."

Before any of the eight could finish speaking, they all froze.

The same ghostly fire flared in each of their eyes.

It quickly spread and began to burn slowly across their heads.

The eight stood motionless, as if stupefied, like human candles.

A wisp of ghostly fire flashed past, and Sefni appeared out of thin air. She regarded the eight human "candles" coldly.

"The Fire of Desire never stops burning."

Sefni raised a hand and held a small flame in her palm.

Its light played across her unremarkable face. Her lips curved slightly, and she wore an expression of remembered pleasure and ease.

"How long has it been? I'd almost forgotten I could decide the lives and deaths of these mortals on a whim."